During his first official visit to the rail corridor on Tuesday, the minister of transportation, Saidu Alkali, inaugurated the first cargo movement from the Lagos-Ibadan track.
The minister began the visit at the Ebute Meta station, then proceeded over the 157-kilometer rail line to Apapa for the launch before continuing on to Ibadan.
The first-ever freight movement began with the loading of three coaches each holding 30 wagons.
The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) announced that it would begin with three coaches each day, but that it had the capacity to increase those numbers.
The Apapa port saw 92.28 percent of Nigeria’s total exports and 60.77 percent of its imports in the first quarter of 2022 (Q1’22), and this initiative is meant to relieve that congestion.
